Michigan Attorney Dana Nessel, the first openly gay candidate elected to Michigan state office, will serve as Grand Marshal of the 2019 Up North Pride Visibility March in Traverse City, Mich., on June 22.

Nessel will lead marchers through downtown Traverse City from F&M Park to the Open Space in a family-friendly celebration of LGBTQ+ visibility. The event will begin with a Pride Picnic at F&M Park at 3pm, followed by a rally in the park at 6pm. Immediately following the rally, Nessel will lead the march to the Open Space, where Up North Pride will host a free community Visibility Celebration from 7pm to midnight. The event will include live entertainment, DJs, cocktails, food trucks, dancing, carnival games for the whole family, and more.

Nessel has been recognized as a premier defender of LGBTQ+ rights in Michigan and beyond. In 2010, she brought the matter of Harmon v. Davis, in which a Michigan court held for the first time that a non-biological parent in a same-sex couple could establish custodial rights to the couple’s children. Nessel also successfully petitioned for the first second-parent adoptions for same-sex couples in Oakland and Wayne Counties. In 2012, she spearheaded the precedent-setting case, DeBoer v. Snyder, which challenged the bans on adoption and marriage for same-sex couples in Michigan. DeBoer was later consolidated with its affiliated U.S. Sixth Circuit cases into Obergefell v. Hodges in the U.S. Supreme Court – the landmark case that legalized same-sex marriage nationwide.

The Up North Pride Visibility March & Celebration are two of several events taking place during Up North Pride Week 2019, scheduled for June 17-23 in Traverse City. Other events include a live storytelling night, an LGBTQ+ shorts film festival at the State Theatre, a Pride Ride with Norte, a pop-up art gallery, a Drag Night at The Little Fleet, and more. Click here for a complete schedule of Up North Pride Week 2019 events.